Friday, March 29, 2013

Today is Good Friday, the day Christians around the world observe what they believe to be the central fact of history: that God's son, sent to live among us, willingly offered himself as a sacrifice for the transgressions of all mankind.

In order to vicariously atone for mankind's sins, Christ allowed himself to be subjected to trumped-up charges, a wrongful conviction, and an unjust death penalty. He was brought before the Roman Prefect, Pontius Pilate, who promptly declared him innocent. But to appease the angry mob, Pilate ordered Christ to be flogged. When that wasn't enough for them, Pilate allowed Christ to be crucified.

Jesus is the most famous wrongly accused and wrongly convicted person in history, and his death holds lessons for modern men and women.

The sacrifice of innocents to answer a public outcry, fomented by persons with a political agenda, is a phenomenon likely as old as civilization, and it still happens today. Mark A Godsey of the Innocence Project recently said that "the risk of wrongful conviction is the highest when there’s public outcry. Most of the exonerations and wrongful convictions have occurred in rape cases."

It is well to remember that with Jesus, the mob used the state to carry out its vile deed on Good Friday. God allowed his son to be tried, convicted, and executed by the state in order to make a critical point. Being subjected to a criminal act by individuals acting on their own would not have manifested the community's rejection of the Messiah. The Divine Plan recognized that, all other things being equal, misconduct by the state in punishing an innocent is qualitatively different from, and more significant than, misconduct by persons acting on their own. That is one of the bases for celebrated English jurist William Blackstone's assertion that it is better that ten guilty men escape punishment than that one innocent suffer at the hands of the state.

Just as Christians believe that all of us ultimately bear responsibility for Christ's death, all of us, figuratively speaking, have blood on our hands for the mistreatment of the modern day wrongly accused.

We are the mob shouting "Crucify him!" and leading an innocent man off to Golgotha.

Thursday, March 28, 2013

A former middle school official is heading to trial for allegedly committing repeated sex acts with a female student more than six years ago. But the trial court has held that the jury will be permitted to hear evidence that the alleged victim made an accusation to police against a different man around the same time she first accused the former school official last April. That second man was never arrested or charged with a crime (we assume that's because law enforcement knew that the accuser would not be believed). Under Michigan’s rape shield law an alleged victim’s sexual history is barred from evidence, but the defense may present evidence about previous false accusations of rape. http://www.mlive.com/news/muskegon/index.ssf/2013/03/jury_in_steele_middle_school_s.html

Detectives investigating the rape of a teenage girl in a cemetery say it was a false allegation.

It had been reported the victim was walking from Market Street through Bury cemetery,south of Bury town centre, when she was attacked.

Police were told that on the afternoon of Thursday, March 7, a man grabbed hold of her and pulled her away from the footpath before raping her.

Officers have since confirmed that it was a false report, and no attack took place.

Detective Inspector Ian Harratt, of GMP's serious sexual offences unit, said: “On this occasion the rape that was reported to have taken place in Bury cemetery earlier this month has proven to be a false account.

"However, this does not change the fact that we take all reports of rape seriously and investigate thoroughly and without prejudice, which can be demonstrated by our significant investment in relation to this report.

"I hope this incident does not deter victims from coming forward to police. We have specially-trained officers who give a tremendous amount of time and support to anyone who has been a victim of rape and we work extremely closely with the St Mary's Sexual Assault Referral Centre.”

Anyone who has been a victim of rape or sexual assault can contact Greater Manchester Police on 0161 872 5050 or 999 in an emergency. GMP has specially trained officers in place to provide a first class response to victims and help support them through the criminal justice process.

Anyone with information should call police on 101 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

Watch the video on the WPXI site here. The news report provides some very disturbing details about a sick and twisted rape lie that put a young man and his family through "pure hell" for nine months. It is now clear that this was nothing more than a "he said, she said" case, and that law enforcement gambled with a young man's life solely because the false accuser was a convincing witness. Defense counsel Bill Difenderfer, a superstar criminal defense attorney in Pennsylvania, said this: "When it's his word against her word, you have to pause: you need more."

At the start of the television news report, the anchorwoman correctly exclaims: "He said he didn't do it, but no one was ready to believe him . . . ." And that's typical in virtually every case involving a rape claim.

We also learn here that Matt spent four days in jail for a crime he didn't commit before he was released; that there was no DNA evidence (how could there be? Neither Matt nor the false accuser were with each other when the rape supposedly occurred); that at the time the false accuser said she was being raped, she was at a dance club, and that she spent the night with another guy (for his part, Matt was home with his parents); that she admitted she lied about Matt so she wouldn't get in trouble because the other guy gave her "sucker bites" -- as Matt's defense counsel correctly said: "Get out of trouble with my dad and let a kid go to jail for five or ten years"; and that Matt's family has had to pay $20,000 in legal fees. Mr. Difenderfer said this: “I have never seen such a fabrication as this. It’s such a sick thing to do.”

Here is the story from the WPXI site:

Teen admits to faking rape at South Park wave pool

CANONSBURG, Pa. — An 18-year-old Venetia woman is facing perjury charges after investigators said she lied about being raped in the parking lot of the South Park wave pool last year.

According to the criminal complaint, Katelyn Webster told authorities she raped by Matthew Folino while sitting in the pool’s parking lot in June 2012.

Webster told police that Folino put his hands around her neck to hold her down. There were marks on her neck to validate her story.

Folino, who adamantly denied the claim, spent four days in jail and was then placed on house arrest. Despite no DNA evidence, Webster was so convincing that the case headed for trial.

“I have never seen such a fabrication as this. It’s such a sick thing to do,” Folino’s defense attorney William Difenderfer said.

A few weeks before the trial, two of Webster’s friends came forward and said Webster wasn’t at the wave pool that day. They said she was at a dance club and spent the night at another guy’s house. They said the marks on her neck were ‘sucker bites’ from that guy.

Authorities said Webster admitted to making the false report earlier this month.

“It’s hard to understand why or how someone could sit there and lie for that long. This isn’t a white lie. It’s complete disregard for somebody’s well-being,” Difdenderfer said.

The complaint said she made up the story so she wouldn’t get in trouble with her father for having the marks on her neck.

All charges against Folino were immediately dropped.

“It was a great feeling to know they were dropped. What should have been done in the first place was done,” Folino said.

Folino was arrested and charged with multiple felonies. But two of Webster's girlfriends refuted her whole story, saying she was trying to hide another relationship and that the choke marks came from another boy.

The charges against Folino were dropped earlier this month.

George Bills Jr., Webster's attorney, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Webster was released from jail after posting $20,000 bond. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for April 8.

An 18-year-old woman is charged with perjury after police say she lied about being raped while under oath.

According to a criminal complaint filed by the Allegheny County police in district Judge Robert Wyda's courtroom, Katelyn Webster, of Venetia, went to the Washington Hospital in June 2012 and reported she was raped by Matthew Folino while sitting in the South Park Wave Pool parking lot.

Webster told police Folino placed his hands around her neck and held her down in his vehicle, according to the complaint. Police stated Webster had "noticeable marks on her neck and back."

Folino was held for court after Webster testified against him at his preliminary hearing in August 2012, according to Wyda.

As Folino's trial approached this year, two female witnesses that were going to testify came forward and stated that Webster asked them to tell people they were at the pool with her on June 3, according to the complaint.

"It wasn't until they (the witnesses) learned of an upcoming trial that they realized the nature of Webster's request," police stated.

Webster was not at the wave pool, she was at Club Zoo with the two girls and they all spent the night at another guy's house, according to the complaint. That is where Webster got "sucker bites" on her neck from another man, according to police.

Police stated they interviewed Webster on March 6, 2013 regarding the new information and that she admitted to making the false report against Folino.

"She stated that she fabricated the story so that she would not get in trouble with her father for having 'sucker bites,'" according to the complaint.

Webster is now facing one count of perjury, one count of false reports to law enforcement authorities and one count of false swearing. Her preliminary hearing is scheduled for Monday in Wyda's courtroom.

A Venetia woman was charged with numerous offenses, including perjury, after she allegedly admitted accusations she made of rape and sexual assault against a Canonsburg man never happened.

Katelyn Webster, 18, of 189 Irishtown Road Extension, was charged March 11 by Allegheny County police with one count each of perjury, false reports to law enforcement and false swearing for an incident she told county police occurred June 3 at South Park in Bethel Park.

Webster, police said, accused Matthew Folino, 27, of 118 Sunset Drive, Canonsburg, of raping her in a car in the parking lot of the wave pool. As a result of Webster’s accusations, Folino was charged with rape, sexual assault, simple assault and two counts of indecent assault. Those charges have since been dropped.

Initially, the charges against Folino were held for court following a preliminary hearing before District Judge Robert Wyda of Bethel Park on Aug. 6, during which Webster testified to the alleged event.

Folino’s criminal trial was set for March 20 in Allegheny County. But before the trial, two female witnesses came forward saying Webster asked them to say they were with her at the wave pool June 3. Both witnesses said they had been with Webster June 2 and 3, but the three were never at the wave pool.

On March 6, police say, Webster admitted that she had made a false report against Folino.

Concerned Citizen10:25 pm on Tuesday, March 19, 2013Why can't everyone just mind their own business? I feel terrible for the boy, yes! This is a terrible situation, but hasn't everyone done something wrong? Maybe not to this extent. Just let it go. Her and her family are gonna go through enough problems. Who are we to judge? Only God should judge her. Also, don't attack her family! They weren't in on it with her! Yes, it's wrong, but JUST LET IT GO!

brittany10:58 pm on Tuesday, March 19, 2013obviously 3 of the people, including myself, have had a personal connection to this story... I'm sorry if its a little difficult to just "let it go" but I think your missing the big picture. This innocent man lost valuable time with his family. yes, he was on house arrest, but he was forced to stay in Allegheny county with his two elderly grandparents, instead of his own home in washington county. how you feel not being able to go to your own home for 9 months? how would you feel not having any contact with friends for 9 months? how would you feel having to prepare yourself for a 5 year jail sentencing for something you didn't even do? please try to look at the bigger picture of things before you tell people to just "let it go". I'm sure if this were your son, brother, or friend you would have a little more understanding. so maybe it would be best if you took your own advice and minded your own business.

Stephen11:44 pm on Tuesday, March 19, 2013Hey, lets face it, both of these kids have fallen victim to the "world." Yeah, maybe from the human standpoint this young man was falsely accused and unjustly treated, and now, this young lady will be put through an even worse situation. However, from God's standpoint, what both individuals are facing is the consequences of their sin. I feel for both of these individuals because somewhere along the line they were mislead to believe that pre-marital sexual relations is ok. This kind of stuff doesn't happen when sex is contained within the marriage relationship. However, I think moving beyond the blame game is necessary at this point. We obviosuly have two young adults going through something that many of us find unimaginable and the last thing they need to see is hateful speech directed at one another. Again, my heart goes out to both individuals involved in this matter and I pray that in these weeks leading up to Easter many of you would choose to show the same Grace that God gave to you when he allowed His son to die on the Cross for your sins.

What a "Twit"ter1:04 pm on Wednesday, March 20, 2013I was going to post a link to her twitter page, just so everyone could see how much fun she's been having, but ironicly, the page hage been shut down...

Concerned Citizen10:16 pm on Thursday, March 21, 2013Why are you so obsessed with this girl? Unless you are related to the two kids involved, this is no one's business! So many people in this township act like vigilantes. Get a life off the Internet and mind your own business! Let the court do their job!

Karma is a b*tch7:41 am on Friday, March 22, 2013@Concerned Citizen: Obviously you are neither related, nor personally involved in this situation, so perhaps you should take your own advice. We all have lives, many of them disrupted by this piece of garbage. You have no idea the emotional damage and stress this girl has caused. The Folino's waited for "the court to do their job," waiting for the paperwork to be processed for Matthews ankle bracelet to be removed once it came out that she lied.

It took the Police four hours...Just FOUR hours with no evidence to back up her story to hunt him down and take him in.

It took over three weeks...Three freaking weeks while the paper work sat idle on the judges bench for his bracelet to be removed. It was only after repeated calls by his father to the DA's office and several heated conversations that there were advised, "just cut if off."

So unless you know what they went through, maybe you need to keep your thougts & opinions to yourself.

By the way...The story will be airing on KDKA early next week. ; )

Concerned Citizen2:58 pm on Friday, March 22, 2013@Karma is a b*tch: You really don't know who you are talking to because we are connected. I feel very badly for Matthew. I see you are only out for vengeance. So may the courts do what's necessary, but don't belittle people in the process.

Karma is a b*tch4:55 pm on Friday, March 22, 2013@Concerned "Let the court do their job!" That is the problem...the court was not doing their job...So where does that leave us? It leaves the Folino's doing 95% of the leg work and investigation to clear their son's name.

The police "had their guy," their job was done, case closed...Move on to the next perp.

The system is broken, "guilty until proven innocent" is how things are, not the other way around.

Karma is a b*tch3:10 pm on Friday, March 22, 2013This article doesn't even begin to scratch the surface of what this young woman did. I wonder how bad her home life must be to weave such a wicked story just to hide from her parents where her "sucker bites" came from.

Within mere hours of her going to the police and fabricating her story, the police swarmed like angry hornets around the neighborhood looking for Matthew. Seven hours later around one or two in the morning while Matthew was playing video games, the police parked a block away and eight (8) police came to the Folino residence to arrest Matthew with their weapons drawn as they were searching for a fugitive wanted for armed robbery.

I can't even begin to imagine the nightmare that followed...

(cont...)

Karma is a b*tch3:17 pm on Friday, March 22, 2013It took the police only four hours based on a fictitious statement backed up by absolutely ZERO evidence to be on the hunt for Matthew and arrest him a few hours after that.

FACT: The "noticeable marks" on her neck & back were from a bra strap! There were NO other scratches or bruises.

On top of that she got two of her friends in on the lie and tweeted to them about sticking to the story they talked about.

Yet, when the police were made aware that this false rape accusation was completely fabricated it took several WEEKS for Matthew to get his ankle bracelet removed...

It seemed as if no one cared and just dragged their feet. The paperwork just sat waiting to be signed…Where was the sense of urgency to right a wrong for the real victim of this crime?

It was only after repeated calls by the Folino's to the prosecutor’s office that Matthew was told to cut off his ankle bracelet off with scissors just days before his last birthday...What a present!

It's a real shame the police NEVER apologized to Matthew for the way this was handled, especially after it came to light that this was made up.

Karma is a b*tch3:25 pm on Friday, March 22, 2013The system appears to be stacked against men, just hearing from the Folino's personal experience. Put yourself in their shoes and imagine being told by someone that runs in the legal circle that deals with this court that it's referred to as "castration court."

This young woman and her family need to know what they put the Folino's through. I don’t think until they feel the financial squeeze of retaining a lawyer, the legal fees and court costs associated with mounting a legal defense will they truly understand what the Folino’s went through. All of the heartache, the pain & suffering the Folino's have had to endure fighting to save their son from a potential FIVE YEAR jail sentence.

Matthew’s crime? Playing video games in his house the night he was picked up by police, all because of a selfish woman's lie. Not a little white lie, a lie that was going to ruin the rest of this man's life.

I have no sympathy for this woman, and can only hope that she enjoys the same hospitality the system showed to the Folino's.

Matthew IS the victim of a horrible crime that had the potential to ruin the REST of his life. He would have gone to jail, had to register as a sex offender and had that black mark on his record for the REST of his life!

(cont...)

From the Land of Happy Little Trees...3:54 pm on Friday, March 22, 2013The system appears to be stacked against men, just hearing from the Folino's personal experience. Put yourself in their shoes and imagine being told by someone that runs in the legal circle that deals with this court that it's referred to as "castration court."

I don’t think until they feel the financial squeeze of retaining a lawyer, the legal fees and court costs associated with mounting a legal defense will they truly understand what the Folino’s went through. All of the heartache, the pain & suffering the Folino's have had to endure fighting to save their son from a potential FIVE YEAR jail sentence.

Matthew’s crime? Playing video games in his house the night he was picked up by police, all because of a lie. Not a little white lie, a lie that was going to ruin the rest of this man's life.

Maybe she will get to enjoy the same hospitality the system showed to the Folino's.

Matthew IS the victim of a horrible crime that had the potential to ruin the REST of his life. He would have gone to jail, had to register as a sex offender and had that black mark on his record for the REST of his life!

(cont...)

From the Land of Happy Little Trees...4:12 pm on Friday, March 22, 2013What a scary world we live in where your life can be destroyed so easily by a lie. She needs to be punished to the FULLEST extent that the law will allow and made an example of.

Maybe she will do actual jail time, vs. just having house arrest...Nine months would be a good start, that's what the Folino’s lost and will never get back.

Not only did she almost ruin an innocent man’s life, she is wasting your tax dollars by filing a false report. She took police (a finite resource) away from dealing with actual crimes. More of your tax dollars will be spent prosecuting her now. In addition, gumming up the already overburdened legal system with a bogus case…Although not bogus anymore…Now she is the one being charged with a real crime. How many other innocent men are in jail because of similar circumstances?

Lastly, this type of thing does not help the cause of people that actually were raped, if anything it has the potential to make it more difficult for actual rape victims.

SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic — Three women were paid to falsely claim in videotaped interviews that they had sex for money with U.S. Senator Robert Menendez in the Dominican Republic, a spokesman for the police said today.The women, whose claims generated media attention in the United States, were hired by a Dominican attorney to make the videotaped statements, spokesman Maximo Baez told reporters. Two of the women received about $425 and the other was paid about $300, he said.

Authorities are seeking to interrogate the attorney, Melanio Figueroa, about the payments and have not determined his motive or whether he was in turn paid by someone else to set up the interviews, Baez said.

The women have not been detained.

The police spokesman was making his most detailed comments to date on an investigation into the source of allegations that Menendez had sex with prostitutes, including two who were underage at the time, while in the Dominican Republic with his friend and campaign contributor, Dr. Salomon Melgen, a south Florida doctor, and with Vinicio Castillo Seman, an attorney whose family is politically prominent in the Dominican Republic. Castillo and Menendez have denied hiring prostitutes.

Castillo, a cousin of Melgen, requested the investigation into what he said were "false and defamatory" accusations.

Two of the videotaped interviews with the women were published on a conservative Washington website as Menendez ran for re-election in November. The allegations gained wider attention after federal agents searched Melgen's office and the senator acknowledged that he failed to reimburse $58,000 for two flights on a private jet for trips to the Dominican Republic.

Jose Polanco, a prosecutor in the town of La Romana, said he interviewed all three women and also determined that none was underage at the time of the supposed encounters with the senator.

Elizabeth "Leigh" Garner, 42, A former NFL cheerleader followed a 12-year-old boy into the bathroom of his parent's house during a party and fondled his penis and tried to pull down his pants. She asked if he'd "ever been with a woman," and he bolted and told his mom.

The New York Daily News ran the story, and the reader comments under the story are disturbing. Imagine if the genders were reversed:

▲Kid…someday you're going to regret telling your mother.

▲My goodness, women are becoming more and more rambunctious these days.

▲I'll say the same thing when I see these female teachers sleeping with their students.... Damn where was she when I was 12!!! LMAO

▲Why do I always get stuck going to the house parties where the biggest draw is the 3 - bean salad? Dang.

▲ha ha ha... can't fix stupid.

▲This 12 year old better be Ron Jeremy or he just missed the chance of a lifetime.

▲wow, if that happened to me when I was 12, I would have though I had hit the jackpot.

Tuesday, March 26, 2013

Edit: 5:05 PM Eastern Time: In the Matt Folino case, the writer "martha" has responded to critics. My reply to her response to me:

You have excluded yourself from the public discourse on a very serious issue with your shrill odium. Matt's family and friends are reading these comments, as is Matt, I am sure, and your your insistence that his story should be censored the way the Soviet Union used to censor news stories is hateful. Moreover, it smacks of "patriarchy"-smashing gender get-even-ism. Mature adults have no room for such silliness in 2013. Matt can't help that he was born male, and that someone chose to victimize him in this fashion. Get over it.

Instead of sweeping problems like this, and Brian Banks' false rape claim and a thousand others, under the rug, you would do well to tell young women not to make false rape claims. They destroy innocent young men and do a disservice to rape victims.

This story isn't about "rape" or Steubenville or you. It's about a young man who suffered a grievous wrong. So nice of you to have compassion!

END OF ADDITION

___________________________

The way to battle false rape claims is not to pretend they don't happen, it's to join us in battling false rape claims.

Here's a trigger warning for the community of the wrongly accused: below are two comments, reposted verbatim, that appeared under two recent horrific stories about false rape claims. The writers in both comments expressed anger that the television station and the television network, respectively, dared to actually air the stories in the aftermath of the Steubenville rape case. The first comment appeared under the KDKA-TV story about a false rape claim near Pittsburgh. The second comment appeared on CBS's "60 Minutes" site under the video of the Brian Banks story that aired this past Sunday.Never mind that the completely innocent young men in both stories suffered unspeakable harm. Because the young men were victimized by false rape claims, their stories should not have been aired, these writers seem to think.

First, it is critical that these stories be aired because, all due apologies to the two writers, it would be difficult to imagine news short of murder as horrifying as a false claim that deprives someone of his or her liberty.

Second, while the primary victims of these two stories are the two falsely accused young men, these incidents also hurt rape victims, and they can't be swept under the rug. Every rape lie diminishes the integrity of every rape victim. Rape victims have expressed support for the work of this blog for that very reason. When the public sees that accusers are given license to destroy young men with impunity, and that the system doesn't provide adequate safeguards to keep the innocent from being hauled from school or their homes in the middle of the night on the word of a false accuser (as happened to the two young men in the stories commented on), jurors are all the more wary about convicting men and boys accused of rape even when the evidence supporting guilt is compelling. While the public insists on harsh punishment for rapists, it does not tolerate a system that destroys the innocent.

The way to battle false rape claims is not to pretend they don't happen, it's to join us in battling false rape claims. This means more substantial custodial sentences for proven rape liars, and more safeguards for presumptively innocent men and boys accused of heinous sex crimes -- the kinds of things we talk about on this blog all the time.

Here are the stomach-churning comments:

marthaWhile I sympathize with this young man plight, I find it disturbing that KDKA chose to run with this story in light of the recent events in nearby Steubenville. Instead, why doesn't KDKA do a report on the facts of rape. The low estimate of women raped in the US per year is 300,000...the high estimate 1.3 million women. The percentage of rapes not reported: 54%. A women's chance of being raped: 1 in 5. The number of women in the US impregnated as a result of rape: 32,000. The number of states in which a rapist can sue for custody of that child: 31. The number of rape kits left untested in Houston TX: 6000-7000. The number of adult men accused of repeatedly gang raping an 11 year old girl - 14. Their excuse: She dressed older than her age. The age of a woman raped in Central Park: 73. Percentage of rapists who have never been incarcerated: 97. And...percentage of rapes that studies find are false claims: 2-8. Did you know that the Supreme Court of Connecticut overturned the sexual assault conviction of a man who had sex with a woman who has severe cerebral palsy, the intellectual function equivalent of a 3 year old and cannot verbally communicate because she did not "bite, kick, scratch, screech, groan or gesture" her lack of consent? Where are these stories? Where is the story of the victim in the Steubenville rape? The rapists have been pitied all over the major networks yet no one stands for the courage of the young woman who risked everything to show the 'rape culture' that exists in this country. Shame on you, KDKA. Shame on you.

While I appreciate the importance of Mr Banks' struggle and the atrocity of him being falsely accused, I am abhorred that CBS would highlight this story, in the face of the recent Steubenville trial/verdict. The timing of the story seems to suggest that CBS and 60 minutes feel that most rape trials/accusations are false and that the accusers should be castigated for speaking up. It perpetuates that belief that rape doesn't happen, that men can get away with assault, not be held accountable b/c the accuser should not be believed.

Unfortunately, the norm is that the victim does not report the assault, the crime is not judged, and the offending man is off scot-free without any accountability. This story, at this time, minimizes the incidence and impact of rape in this country and around the world. I am appalled that 60 minutes, a reputedly "excellent" news journalism program would stoop to this level and be so ignorant to not take into account the social milieu.

I expect a higher caliber of news from this station and show and expect a better understanding of the state of violence against women. How many hours have you devoted to the impact of rape on the lives of women? Not anywhere near the proportion of rape inflicted on women, unreported and/or unvindicated, to wrongly accused cases impacting the lives of men.

I don't dispute the injustice that Mr. Banks has suffered or the obstacles he's overcome to pursue his dream. I just can't believe that CBS/60 minutes chooses to air this story (a rerun so there was a conscious choice to air it tonight) at this time with this message. You need to balance this story by 100/1000-fold with the stories of the many women raped in high school, in college, in the military, in other settings; who have not received justice and educate the public about the impact such an act of violence has on their lives.

Step up 60 minutes; step up Leslie Stahl; Step up Anderson Cooper; Step up the lot of you and stand against the status quo.

The news report below is truly horrifying -- and it could happen to any young man. He was hauled out of bed in the middle of the night and arrested almost exclusively on the word of a false rape accuser. His attorney, Bill DiFenderfer, a seasoned and well-respected defense attorney in Western Pennsylvania, bemoaned the absence of a more thorough investigation before subjecting Mr. Folino to what could have been a life-altering arrest. While County Police Superintendent Charles Moffatt defended the arrest, any suggestion that the system worked as well as it could, or should, is simply morally grotesque. We wonder if the Police Superintendent would wish such a horrible fate on his son? The people of Allegheny County should not tolerate this:

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) – Imagine police showing up at hour house in the middle of the night, taking you out of bed and arresting you for a crime you know you didn’t commit.

If that sounds more like a movie than real life, you’d be wrong. A man from the South Hills says it happened to him.

Not only that, but the woman who accused him of raping her now faces charges that she made it all up.

Last June Matthew Folino was asleep in bed at 2 a.m. when there was banging on his door and people shouting his name.

“It was the police, they had their guns drawn, they were shining their flashlights through the windows and they took me,” Folino said.

A young woman named Katelyn Webster told investigators that Folino had stalked, choked and raped her, and she showed them neck bruises to prove it.

The only problem is that she made it all up.

By then, Folino was in jail looking at five to 10 years of hard time.

“It was scary. I had never been arrested, I’d never been in trouble in that way, but I figured, I was innocent so they’re going to figure this out in a day or so and I’m going to be out of here. They’re going to do their job and this is going to be over, but that never happened,” Folino said.

Folino said he met Webster only weeks before and after a brief fling, he decided to end it.

“I just told her this really wasn’t working out,” he said. “I didn’t know where it was going and I thought we should move on.”

But then Webster went to the police with a story she would later tell in court — that Folino came to the South Park Wave Pool and called her out to the parking lot. He then drove her to that parking lot where he choked and raped her, stopping only when they were discovered by her two girlfriends.

Then, she said he shoved her from the car and took off.

“She made me seem like this horrible person and I’m not that person. And I’m not that person at all. I would never do something like this. And I can’t believe someone would accuse a person of this,” Folino said.

Attorney Bill DiFenderfer said police arrested and charged Folino almost strictly on the basis of the woman’s statement.

When his investigator contacted the two girlfriends, DiFenderfer said the women refuted the whole story, saying Webster was in a new relationship and didn’t want her father to know. The women said those choke marks on her neck turned out to be from that other boy.

“It came right to light that none of this even happened. They told about sucker bites and none of them were at the wave pool. They were with the alleged victim the night before and she wasn’t even at the wave pool,” DiFenderfer said.

The Folino family’s anger doesn’t end with the girl.

“It’s very disappointing to me in these cases that can clearly destroy people’s lives that more wasn’t done to investigate it,” DiFenderfer said.

County Police Superintendent Charles Moffatt defended his detectives on the case.

“They did what they could do in an instance like this,” he said. “We had a girl at the hospital saying she was raped, she had marks around her neck.”

Moffatt said the detectives did try to corroborate Webster’s account, but she said she didn’t know the last names of the two other girls and couldn’t provide their phone numbers. That — says DiFenderfer — should have been another red flag.

“To me, the public should be aware that this does happen,” DiFenderfer said. “And for the women who really are victims, it really hurts their case and to me, that what’s so outrageous about it because it damages the true victims.”

After interviewing the two girlfriends, County Police dropped the charges against Folino and arrested Webster.

She now faces charges of making false statements and perjury for a rape that never happened.

Friday, March 22, 2013

I'm sick of hearing about the perpetrators' personal story. The only story is the victims' story, yet the news media devours every morsel of information about the perpetrators.

I'm sick of being told the perpetrators should be treated with "compassion."

I'm sick of the perpetrators being portrayed as "stupid," "vulnerable," and "troubled" instead of what they are -- evil -- and of hearing that a vile act that might have destroyed the life of an innocent victim should be blamed on the perpetrators' "backgrounds" and their "personal issues." I even heard someone describe the crime as "a very human story and in a way understandable."

I'm sick of hearing how the perpetrators need "therapeutic intervention" more than they need a custodial sentence.

I'm sick of the victim blaming, and of hearing how there are "lessons to be learned all around" -- including on the part of the "sleezy" victim. I'm sick of hearing how this would not have occurred if the victim's conduct hadn't allowed it. One commentator said this was the "good scare" the victim "well deserved." Someone even said that the perpetrators might be guilty, but that doesn't mean the victim was "innocent."

I'm sick of the news media treating the perpetrators' vile acts as "unusual" and "rare."

And, finally, I'm sick of hearing how "we really don't know what happened" here, and that the perpetrators might actually not be guilty, even after the verdict.

You think I'm talking about Steubenville, right? Guess again.

Regular readers of this blog and our predecessor blog have seen every one of the things that I'm sick of, some of them many times, in news stories about a false accusation of a vile sex act. Some of those cases had disastrous results for the wrongly accused.

The people who dominate the public discourse about sexual assault have flooded the Internet with vituperative rants over stupid comments made in connection with the Steubenville rape case. I, too, am thoroughly appalled by much of what I've seen in connection with the Steubenville case.

Then it dawned on me, we are accustomed to seeing such things in the community of the wrongly accused. When the Hofstra falsely accused were booed on a national television show, who bothered to stick up for them? When newspapers quote supposed "experts" who say that false accusers should never get custodial sentences, when a columnist in a major U.S. daily writes that men falsely accused of rape got "the good scare they deserved," when news report after news report after news report talks about false accusers as "troubled," when a judge says a rape lie was "understandable," who besides us complains about it? Certainly very few of the folks complaining about the comments in connection with the Steubenville case.

In fact, some of the people upset about comments made in connection with the Steubenville case are the same ones who say the things I'm sick of when it comes to the wrongly accused.

We have long been perplexed by self-proclaimed progressives who cheer on the Dept. of Education's mandate to roll back the due process rights of one class of our citizens -- male students on campus (the "Dear Colleague" letter's mandate is ostensibly gender neutral, but it openly admits that the draconian changes it set in motion were to benefit women who are sexually abused by college men). It is difficult to recall an instance in our recent history where self-proclaimed progressives favored anything along these lines. The problem is that reducing the standard of proof enhances the possibility of getting it wrong and punishing an innocent student. This is almost always a concern to progressives, but not in this case.Prof. KC Johnson, the blogging guru of the Duke lacrosse non-rape case, provides an illustration that is chillingly apt. He describes how New York Times' reporter Richard Pérez-Peña "gushed over" a student sexual assault advocate named Dana Bolger at Amherst. Bolger's "activism" includes bemoaning the "impossibly high" standard of proof for men accused of sex offenses in criminal proceedings and applauding the Dept. of Education's mandate to roll back the due process rights of men on campus by lowering the standard of proof to a mere preponderance of the evidence (50.001%). Prof. Johnson asks, rhetorically, if the Times would ever tout an activist who sought to roll back the due process rights of other groups:

Though he gushed over her status as an activist, Pérez-Peña couldn't find space to describe what sorts of things Bolger has actually demanded in her activism. He needn't have looked too far: in a "Room for Debate" item the Times published a few days ago, Bolger proclaimed that "the criminal justice process," with its excessively lengthy pre-trial proceedings, "revictimizes rape survivors," in part because "the standard of proof is impossibly high." By contrast, "the college disciplinary system offers survivors a shorter process and quicker remedy," and accused students can be judged "based on a preponderance of evidence standard."

Imagine the Times--in a straight news article, no less--soothingly presenting an "activist" who backed military tribunals for suspected terrorists on the grounds that there's a need for "a shorter process and quicker remedy"; or because, in the criminal justice system, "the standard of proof is impossibly high." But when the subject is a figure whose goal is to make campus convictions easier, Pérez-Peña didn't even see fit to mention Bolger's extraordinary attack on a basic principle of American due process.

Bulls-eye. This is not liberalism; it is a manifestation of fealty to group identity politics. We are witnessing a chilling kind of political correctness that cheers when due process rights are rolled back -- but only when it comes to young men on campus.

Thursday, March 21, 2013

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - Pope Francis will hold a major ceremony next week in the chapel of a youth prison instead of in the Vatican or a Rome basilica where it has been held before, the Vatican said on Thursday. Francis will conduct the Holy Thursday afternoon service at the Casal del Marmo jail for minors on Rome's outskirts.During the service, the pope washes and kisses the feet of 12 people to commemorate Jesus's gesture of humility towards his apostles on the night before he died.

All previous popes in living memory held the service either in St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican or in the Basilica of St. John in Lateran, which is the pope's cathedral church in his capacity as bishop of Rome.

Vatican spokesmen said they could not recall an occasion when the service was held anywhere else.

When he was archbishop of Buenos Aires, the former Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio often celebrated the Holy Thursday service in a jail, a hospital, a home for the elderly or with poor people.

A pope is also bishop of Rome and the decision by Francis to hold the service in the prison was another indication that he intends to take that role seriously.

The Holy Thursday service is one of several during Holy Week, which for Catholics this year begins on March 24 with Palm Sunday and ends with Easter Sunday on March 31.

Several months ago, Ryan Romo, a high school baseball standout, was arrested on his front lawn after a classmate accused him of sexual assault in a "he said/she said" claim. Subsequently, a grand jury failed to find probable cause to indict Ryan, and he was cleared of the charges. As a result of the charges, Ryan says he lost his college baseball opportunities and is no longer a potential Major League Baseball prospect.

Now Ryan is back in the news. He and his parents are suing the still-unnamed girl and her parents and step-father for defamation. We discuss the suit below. Of course, we have no first-hand knowledge about whether the rape claim was a lie, but if the assertions in the suit are factual, they are disturbing in the extreme. Before we discuss the suit, we highlight one of the most odious aspects of the accusation against Ryan Romo.

A writer for the Dallas News named Jacquielynn Floyd took offense at the reaction of some Dallas News readers who, she said, engaged in "victim blaming." In the course of denouncing them, the writer did something even more unjust: she made Ryan Romo look guilty (don't take my word for it -- her column is reprinted at the end of this post). That's unpardonable for a writer at a major newspaper.

First, Floyd recounted the "facts" as shown by the affidavit of arrest warrant, which related only the girl's story, not Ryan's. Here is what the Dallas New writer wrote -- read this carefully:

"The basic facts are known. Romo, who will turn 19 on Tuesday, ran into the girl at a concert Saturday night. After the show, the pair took a cab back to his Chevy Tahoe. They drove to his home and parked outside, got in the back seat and began kissing. According to the affidavit, when Romo began physically pressing for sex, the girl told him 'no' and 'stop' several times. She later told her mother, 'I said no but he didn’t care,' again according to the affidavit. A hospital rape exam, and a second examination by the girl’s own doctor, both found physical trauma consistent with forcible assault."

Floyd wrung her hands: "I was genuinely poleaxed with disbelief at some of the crazy, cruel scenarios some people are spinning to explain this particular set of facts."

Remember, Floyd prefaced the above rendition of purported events by asserting "the basic facts are known." But note how she slips in assertions from the arrest warrant affidavit without bothering to relate that "this particular set of facts" did not tell Ryan's side of the story. Didn't her readers deserve to know that the accused's side of the story was not included in "the basic facts" that she claimed were "known"? Or would that simple assertion have undermined the point she was trying to make? (When Floyd sees this -- and she will -- I would ask her if the police even bothered to ask Ryan a single question before they came for him on his front lawn.)

The Romos’ lawsuit does tell Ryan's side of the story -- and it is markedly different than "the basic facts" related by the Dallas News writer: Ryan asked the girl point blank if she wanted to have sex in the backseat of his car. She reportedly answered “yes” and even gave Ryan “instructions” on how to proceed. The girl told Ryan to “put it in all the way” and then to “wait” because she was in pain, and that Ryan only resumed when she told him, “Okay, I’m good.” After the teens had sex, Ryan allegedly declined the girl’s offer to sleep over and drove her home.

Second, let's look at the "victim blaming" that Floyd found so terribly offensive. She was upset that some readers dared to question the "particular set of facts" related in the warrant affidavit. "Their automatic disbelief is so sad, so utterly lacking in compassion, that they sound like savage animals tearing at the flesh of a wounded member of their own pack."

Among the comments Floyd found so repugnant: "Several writers characterized the case as 'he said/she said,' as if conflicting stories make it impossible to get at the truth." And: "One woman wrote The Dallas Morning News that the accused attacker 'should not be put in the paper with his mugshot like a rapist who breaks into homes and preys on women.'”

How crazy, savage, and cruel these people are!

Then, Floyd's coup de grâce: Although she bemoans what she terms "victim blaming," she, herself, is guilty of something even worse. This is a quote from her piece: "What’s unfortunate about this case — wait, scratch that. What’s revolting, what’s sickening about this case, is the outpouring of comments on public forums vilifying the victim, an unidentified teenage girl." (Emphasis added.) She also complained about a reader "who shares a little forensic gynecological expertise by explaining the victim’sphysical trauma as being 'most likely from the intense sex that they just had in a car.'” (Emphasis added.)

The hypocrisy is breathtaking. In a piece where a Dallas News writer bemoans that some readers have rushed to judgment and assumed the innocence of the accused, she, herself, declared the accuser a "victim."

Words matter. In this context, calling the unnamed girl a "victim" can only mean that Ryan Romo must be guilty. This would have been unjust at any time prior to an adjudication of guilt, but here, Ryan hadn't even been charged with a crime, much less convicted. The grand jury subsequently couldn't find even probable cause to charge him.

As a professional writer for one of America's major dailies, shouldn't Floyd be held to a higher standard than those casual readers she compares to "savage animals"? Or is it okay to rush to judgment and assume guilt but not innocence in rape cases? Branding the accuser a "victim" does a grave disservice to (1) the presumptively innocent young man who, unlike the accuser, is named in the Dallas News, and (2) Dallas News readers, who are entitled to accurate reporting but receive something less than that when she transforms an accuser into a "victim." People reading the newspaper assume the people who write for the Daily News are writing responsibly, and the writer shows elsewhere in her piece that she is capable of being responsible -- sometimes she does refer to the "alleged" victim and the "alleged" perpetrator. But slipping in "victim" without the "alleged" is unpardonable.

Cathy Young recently talked about a new kind of "sexism" where "any man or boy accused of a sex crime is presumed guilty." We see symptoms of that in too many newspaper accounts. "Victim blaming" is wrong. But even worse is assuming that a young man is guilty of a heinous sex crime on the basis of nothing more than an accusation, without even bothering to consider his side of the story.

As noted above, Ryan and his parents have filed a defamation lawsuit against the 16-year-old girl who accused him of rape, and her parents and stepfather. Again, we are not in a position to opine if the suit states a valid claim for relief. If the claim was a lie, by any measure, the suit is justified. The Romos' attorney Mark Senter says the girl “was used as a pawn to further her parents’ ‘get rich quick’ scheme.” The Romos claim the defendants coerced their daughter into making false statements to the police for their own financial gain. Before the case went before the grand jury, and after Ryan had submitted to a four-hour polygraph test, the Romos claim that the defendants approached the Romos and offered to drop the criminal charges in exchange for money and other demands. The Romos declined, preferring instead to see their son’s name cleared. The lawsuit catalogs reports of several other alleged sexual encounters between the girl and other Highland Park students, as well as her parents’ reported knowledge and acceptance of such activities.

We have no idea if any of this true. If it is, it is disturbing in the extreme. The leading contract law treatise of the past century states: ". . . any bargain for the purpose of stifling a criminal prosecution . . . is always contrary to public policy and unenforceable." (Corbin on Contracts, Section 83.1.) How terribly odious to the fair administration of justice that the parents of a teen girl might have tried to trade the prosecution of a fabricated sex offense like commodities in the marketplace. We will be watching this case closely.

Here is the story on the lawsuit. And below is the offensive Dallas News column.Victim-blaming hits new low in Highland Park rape caseJacquielynn Floydjfloyd@dallasnews.comPublished: 01 November 2012 11:21 PM

Let us imagine that a person — could be anybody, but for our purposes, let’s say it’s a wealthy, popular high school athlete from a well-connected family — is accused of armed robbery.

A store clerk identifies him as the robber. The police find the clerk’s story, which is supported by physical evidence, to be credible enough that a warrant is issued and the alleged perpetrator is arrested and charged.

Community-wise, it’s a big story. Everybody’s talking about it.

Tell me, is this your first reaction: The clerk probably gave him the money voluntarily, then yelled “robbery” to cover up the cash shortage. Clerks lie about robbery all the time.

Or this: The store is just asking for it by leaving that cash register full of money right there in plain sight. You can’t expect robbers to resist that kind of loot! What was the store doing open at that time of night, anyway?

Would you wring your hands and lament: Poor kid, there’s no way to tell what really happened. Now his life is ruined.

I assume you’re ahead of me here, and that you know I’m fixing to work around to the case involving Highland Park High School baseball player Ryan Romo, who is charged with sexually assaulting a teenage girl in his car last weekend.

This case began its lumbering journey through the justice system with everybody doing their jobs. A complaint was made; two separate physical examinations supported the allegation, police say; they opened an investigation; a judge acknowledged there was probable cause for an arrest.

Some rape arrests are reported in the news; some aren’t. Given the wealth and prominence of the alleged perpetrator’s family, this particular case was publicized based on information outlined in the warrant affidavit.

It’s not a conviction. It’s an accusation that, at this point, detectives say is supported by evidence and that they are taking seriously. That’s how the system works.

What’s unfortunate about this case — wait, scratch that. What’s revolting, what’s sickening about this case, is the outpouring of comments on public forums vilifying the victim, an unidentified teenage girl.

I can’t for the life of me understand the cruelty of people who are busy constructing speculative, unsupported tales about how this girl is either lying about being raped, or, if she actually was raped, is nonetheless somehow at fault.

“Let’s not pretend women/girls don’t lie about rape,” wrote one commenter/self-appointed legal expert.

The basic facts are known. Romo, who will turn 19 on Tuesday, ran into the girl at a concert Saturday night.

After the show, the pair took a cab back to his Chevy Tahoe.

They drove to his home and parked outside, got in the back seat and began kissing.

According to the affidavit, when Romo began physically pressing for sex, the girl told him “no” and “stop” several times. She later told her mother, “I said no but he didn’t care,” again according to the affidavit.

A hospital rape exam, and a second examination by the girl’s own doctor, both found physical trauma consistent with forcible assault.

Again, it’s not a conviction. But I was genuinely poleaxed with disbelief at some of the crazy, cruel scenarios some people are spinning to explain this particular set of facts.

“Sounds like she told a story when she was late getting home and this has skyrocketed out of control,” one commenter said. And another: “No way this girl testifies. If she climbed in the back seat consensually, his attorneys will destroy her.”

Several writers characterized the case as “he said/she said,” as if conflicting stories make it impossible to get at the truth.

One commenter theorized that even if sexual assault occurred, the victim is partially responsible: “It seems like both sides didn’t make the best choices.”

Several posters, discounting the professional investigative process entirely, insisted that “there’s no way to know” what happened, and that the alleged victim’s statement “is all they have.” Maybe they should throw her into the lake to see whether she floats.

One commenter constructed an entire defense theory.

“She probably consented to having sex [but] claimed it was ‘forced upon her’ due to the fear of consequences by her parents.”

The writer also shares a little forensic gynecological expertise by explaining the victim’s physical trauma as being “most likely from the intense sex that they just had in a car.”

It’s hard to believe that people are saying such things about a teenage girl who might be a rape victim. Their automatic disbelief is so sad, so utterly lacking in compassion, that they sound like savage animals tearing at the flesh of a wounded member of their own pack.

One woman wrote The Dallas Morning News that the accused attacker “should not be put in the paper with his mugshot like a rapist who breaks into homes and preys on women.” What’s missing in the affidavit but the burglary?

Some comments, of course, expressed concern for the alleged victim, or at least suggested that idle speculation should be curbed.

But there was enough outright victim-blaming to scare the daylights out of anybody seeking justice, or even simple decent compassion, after a sexual assault.

I don’t wonder why victims “lie.” I wonder how they ever summon the courage to tell the truth.

Wednesday, March 20, 2013

In the UK, in 38% of investigations linked to allegedly false claims referred to the Crown Prosecution Service between January 2011 and May 2012, the initial complaint of rape or domestic violence was made by someone other than the suspect. That's a shocking statistic, but it is consistent with what we know about false rape claims. Among those under 18 it was 50% and often involved a parent. "It was a feature of these cases that the suspect later reported that the whole thing had spiralled out of control and he or she had felt unable to stop the investigation," the CPS report says. Source.

We know that false rape reports are often prompted by a loved one. A woman or girl will tell to a loved one -- a parent, spouse, or boyfriend -- that she was raped in order to cover up an illicit sexual encounter, and the loved one will either directly report, or urge the purported victim to report, the accusation. This is common among teen girls whose parents don't approve of her sexual activity. The girl fears her parents will find out (e.g., if she becomes pregnant, or the boy brags about it and word gets out), so she does a preemptive strike by telling her parents that the boy forced himself on her. The parents' insistence that the police be contacted may be prompted either by anger about the boy's act, but it may also be prompted by an impulse to disbelieve the girl and to punish her by subjecting her to a miserable process of defending a false rape claim and destroying her young boyfriend for good measure. That is simply wicked.

Feminist gadfly Amanda Marcotte explained that "the idea that it's shameful to just have sex because you want to" is "the reason that you have false rape accusations in the first place." Columnist Amanda Hess similarly talked about women who make false claims to defend their "femininity."

In an ideal world, when a girl reaches an when she can make her own decisions about sex, if she tells her parents she was raped, the parents should offer support and advise her that if she chooses to report it, they will stand with her. They should not, however, insist that the act be reported if she doesn't want to report it. Forcing her to report that she's been raped might subject her to an ordeal she doesn't want, and if it is false, it might destroy an innocent boy and get her in a lot of trouble for making a false rape claim.

An 18-year-old woman is charged with perjury after police say she lied about being raped while under oath.

According to a criminal complaint filed by the Allegheny County police in district Judge Robert Wyda's courtroom, Katelyn Webster, of Venetia, went to the Washington Hospital in June 2012 and reported she was raped by Matthew Folino while sitting in the South Park Wave Pool parking lot.

Webster told police Folino placed his hands around her neck and held her down in his vehicle, according to the complaint. Police stated Webster had "noticeable marks on her neck and back."

Folino was held for court after Webster testified against him at his preliminary hearing in August 2012, according to Wyda.

As Folino's trial approached this year, two female witnesses that were going to testify came forward and stated that Webster asked them to tell people they were at the pool with her on June 3, according to the complaint.

"It wasn't until they (the witnesses) learned of an upcoming trial that they realized the nature of Webster's request," police stated.

Webster was not at the wave pool, she was at Club Zoo with the two girls and they all spent the night at another guy's house, according to the complaint. That is where Webster got "sucker bites" on her neck from another man, according to police.

Police stated they interviewed Webster on March 6, 2013 regarding the new information and that she admitted to making the false report against Folino.

"She stated that she fabricated the story so that she would not get in trouble with her father for having 'sucker bites,'" according to the complaint.

Webster is now facing one count of perjury, one count of false reports to law enforcement authorities and one count of false swearing. Her preliminary hearing is scheduled for Monday in Wyda's courtroom.

Tuesday, March 19, 2013

Recently, Megan E. Jones-Williams, Rape Crisis Services Program Coordinator for The Women's Center, Inc. wrote to this blog to respond to one of our posts. Among other things, she posited the following: "In a culture that overwhelmingly believes men over women, this results in 'her' side being diminished. When a victim tells us that she did not want what happened - that she said 'no' - we believe her."

"We believe her." Jones-Williams' words resonated when I read Cathy Young's latest piece that cautions about a new sexism -- about assuming guilt of men and boys accused of rape on the basis of nothing more than an accusation. Here is an excerpt:

. . . many feminist activists and bloggers who have made Steubenville the latest emblem of America's "rape culture" have often promoted their own brand of sexism, in which any man or boy accused of a sex crime is presumed guilty. The unfortunate truth is that -- particularly in cases involving young, reckless, intoxicated people -- the facts can be very difficult to sort out. Incapacitation clearly rules out consent; but if every person who has sex when his or her judgment is alcohol-impaired is a victim, millions of men and women alike should be behind bars. To treat only men and boys as responsible while under the influence is not only unfair to them, it's patronizing toward women and girls.

The mix of sexual politics and online vigilantism can lead to a lynch-mob mentality that gravely undermines the presumption of innocence -- a cornerstone of justice that some feminist crusaders openly scorn. A few years ago, Wendy Murphy, a former sex crimes prosecutor and law professor at the New England School of Law, declared, "I'm really tired of people suggesting that you're somehow un-American if you don't respect the presumption of innocence, because you know what that sounds like to a victim? Presumption you're a liar."

As it happens, Murphy was talking about an accusation of rape against members of the Duke University lacrosse team that was later exposed as a hoax -- after three young men spent a year fighting false charges and being stigmatized as rapists. Today, the ubiquity of social media could make such wrongful accusations even more damaging.

Thanks to the women's movement, we have seen major gains in the treatment of rape victims. Yet even in the 1970s, pioneering feminist legal scholar Vivian Berger, now a Columbia University emerita law professor, cautioned against "sacrificing legitimate rights of the accused person on the altar of Women's Liberation." It is a warning we should heed.

Trent Mays and Ma'lik Richmond are the architects of their own dissatisfaction. But when news of the verdict of their delinquency was read aloud in the courtroom, and these two seemingly callous young jocks broke down in uncontrollable sobbing, one would have to be fairly cold-hearted not to feel some measure of compassion for the destruction they've brought on themselves. They are, after all, still boys.

Alas, following the verdict of delinquency in the Steubenville rape case, CNN reporters were criticized in some quarters for pointing out that the two boys had "promising futures," that they were "star football players, very good students," and that being registered sex offenders "will haunt them for the rest of their lives" -- in short, for humanizing them, and for verbalizing the scope of the tragedy they had brought on themselves. Seehere. CNN is now under pressure to apologize. See here. I am unaware that CNN ever, in any manner, suggested that the two young men found delinquent, were, in fact, innocent, or had been unjustly deprived of due process, or were being subjected to a sentence that was excessive. CNN was guilty merely for daring to treat these boys as human beings.

One writer summed it up: "While they're [CNN] not necessarily rooting for the rapists, even the slightest bit of sympathy didn't go over well . . . ." Read that again. "Even the slightest sympathy" is too much sympathy. That is twisted beyond measure.

If anything, CNN's treatment of the rapists not as animalistic strangers lurking in the bushes to prey on women, but as real, live boys -- boys who actually go to school and play sports and have families --might be a wake-up call for other real, live boys who actually go to school and play sports and have families. It is easier to dismiss the crime, and its consequences, if we imagine it was committed by faceless sociopaths who must be rotten to the core merely by virtue of the crime they committed. Other boys, and their families, across America who saw that report, and who saw the convicted boys sobbing, might be jolted by the reality that -- these kids look a lot like them.

One point that has been overlooked: CNN was precluded from talking about the victim other than in general terms because she was anonymous in these proceedings. Members of the news media know they aren't allowed to talk about her specifically, and they are always careful not to reveal rape accusers' and victims' identities by inference.

In contrast, while juveniles like Mays and Richmond accused of rape are typically granted anonymity, but the news media made an exception to its general rule in this case and publicly identified them because social media had widely reported their identities. As a result, the news media has not hesitated to show their faces, and their personal stories have been reported. If they had remained anonymous, it is our guess they could not have been humanized so easily.

Let us make this clear. We are unaware of any infirmity in Mays' and Richmond's judicial proceeding that would warrant anger at the victim for subjecting the young men to a wrongful conviction. While we, too, think that underage drinking is a serious problem that needs to be addressed, this is not the time to talk about it. A far greater evil, rape, intervened, and that's what needs to be the focus of attention in this case.

While we understand the disgust over the Steubenville rape sympathizers, that scarcely warrants the criticism heaped on CNN for pointing out the human tragedy that Mays and Richmond brought on themselves.

A man facing a rape trial committed suicide in Indore days after the complainant reportedly admitted that he had only tried to hold her hand after a fight over money.

Roopkishore, 53, was found dead in his home in Palasia locality on Sunday, four days after the woman, 33, admitted during trial that she had falsely charged him with rape to avoid repaying the money her husband owed him.

The woman, who is Roopkishore's tenant, had accused him of raping her on December 26. The police booked him under Section 376 of the IPC and arrested him.

In his defence, Roopkishore, a moneylender, said he had lent some money to the woman's husband for buying a vehicle, and she had framed him to avoid repaying it.

After spending over two months in jail, Roopkishore was released on bail on March 8. During the next hearing on March 13, the woman admitted that the rape charge was false.

On Sunday, Roopkishore left his home in Shubhlabh Residency, where he lived with his wife and daughter. He was found hanging in his other house in Ganeshdham Colony.

Roopkishore reportedly left a suicide note blaming his tenant and her husband.

ACP Ramji Shrivastava said the police were yet to verify the suicide note. He said the suicide note was not found on his body, it was handed over by Roopkishore's family members. He said the police would submit the note to the court.

The police have not registered any case so far against the woman or her husband.

LIVERPOOL, UNITED KINGDOM, Mar 15, 2013 (MARKETWIRE via COMTEX) -- One of the country's leading criminal defence solicitors' firms, DPP Law, slams proposals from the CPS to overhaul the way in which alleged sex offenders in England and Wales are investigated, claiming it will result in a smear campaign.

The nationally based practice sternly opposes the recommendations made today by the Director of Public Prosecution, Kier Starmer, who claimed that there is currently an "overcautious" approach with victims rather than suspects in most, if not all, child sex abuse cases.

The crackdown on the investigation process comes at the back end of the Jimmy Savile scandal, alongside the increased coverage and exposure of recent gang-led grooming incidents.

Severe knee-jerk legislation if introduced, could potentially leave many a lives blighted by the unnecessary stigma of grave crimes says Paul Lewis, Partner and Criminal Defence Expert at DPP Law.

"Experience shows us that when allegations of this nature are made and unsubstantiated, lasting damage can occur to an individual's reputation.

"Current and prospectus job opportunities for instance, may be affected due to the nature of the allegation.

"The starting point, in all complaints that are made of this nature, is to assume the accusation is true - of course very many are but there are also those that are not. Take for instance the case of Elizabeth Jones, 22, who last week was sentenced to 16 months imprisonment for attempting to pervert the course of justice, after filing 11 false rape accusation claims, the first of which was issued in 2004 when she was just 14 years of age."

Mr Lewis explains that the plans to be drawn up by the new College of Policing will not only include a replacement of the current 19 sets of guidelines on the investigation process but will also propose the implementation of a review panel, which would effectively assess cases that have previously been dropped before they reach prosecution. The latter potentially causing significant disruption to acquitted individuals.

"If cases are reopened subsequent to review panel decisions, additional stress and trauma may unnecessarily be brought upon a suspect who, at some point must be entitled to know that the decision not to prosecute them is final."

It's the first time details for England and Wales have been compiled, showing how unusual the problem is.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) looked at a period of 17 months finding that in that time 35 people were charged.

Keir Starmer QC, head of the CPS, called the cases "serious but rare".

Jason, 21, was accused of raping his ex-girlfriend.

"It was devastating," he said. "I was getting harassed outside of work, harassed in work, it's just terrifying.

"Someone approached me and told me to stay away from my ex or basically he'd come back and finish me off completely. He punched me twice in the face and once in the stomach."

There have been calls to allow those accused of rape to remain anonymous, until they are found guilty but the government has ruled that out.

Criminal record

Nottinghamshire Police have successfully prosecuted two women in the last 18 months for making false rape allegations.

One was Rosie Dodd, 20, who was jailed for two years after accusing three men of raping her.

Police say she made the claim because she was embarrassed she'd slept with them in one night.

Support groups for men falsely accused say the problem doesn't end when the accusation is proved untrue, as the claim remains on their criminal record until they apply to get it removed - which can take several months.

The Association of Chief Police Officers (Acpo) confirmed that details of an accusation and the fact it was proved to be a lie, would remain on a police record for six years.

However, they say it would not be revealed to anyone doing a background check.

Dianne Whitfield from Rape Crisis England & Wales says the number of men wrongly accused is small compared to the number of women who are actually being raped.

She believes false allegations aren't as common as people think.

"There is a difference between 'false accusations' and 'not enough evidence'," said Dianne. "False accusations account for only 5% of all reported cases."

Dianne says young women should feel sure their story will be believed when they come forward.

Supt Helen Chamberlain, who leads investigators in Nottinghamshire, says they will always believe the story they are told by a victim, but warns every detail will be investigated.

If you are, or think you may be, a victim of rape you can get help and advice from Rape Crisis on 0808 802 9999 and in Scotland on 08088 01 03 02.

Saturday, March 16, 2013

Comment:In report after report after report about false rape claims, police say that diverting law enforcement resources to the false claim hinders police officers' ability to investigate other crimes. These assertions are generally made in the abstract. Here is a case where police are pointing to a real life investigation that was hindered because of a false rape claim, and it underscores that police aren't kidding when they complain about misdirected resources.

Elgin police, investigating a 2-week-old murder, say they wasted valuable time and resources looking into a report of a nearby sexual assault that turned out to be false.

A Larkin High School senior who lives on the same block as murder victim Lisa Koziol-Ellis made the false report to cover up the fact she lost a dog she was watching, police said.

Katrina R. Sedlock, 18, of the 0-100 block of Garden Crescent Court, was charged with felony disorderly conduct and making a false crime report. She appeared Friday in the Elgin branch of Kane County bond court, police Cmdr. Glenn Theriault said.

Sedlock is a senior at Larkin High School, where she played volleyball in the fall, a school employee confirmed.

Investigators spent time looking into any connection between the alleged sexual assault and the March 2 murder of Koziol-Ellis, who was found stabbed to death, also on the 0-100 block of Garden Crescent Court, Theriault said.

"It was significant," Theriault said of the amount of wasted resources on the false claim, "due to the area it was reported in, and any potential connection to the homicide investigation."

In the meantime, he said, police will be seeking restitution for the costs incurred checking out the assault claim.

Police initially responded to a call just before 7 p.m. Wednesday about a woman lying on the ground and crying at Tyler Creek Plaza in Elgin.

Sedlock was with two friends, a male and a female, and told police her dog had been stolen while they were in an ice cream shop, Theriault said. About 9:20 p.m., he added, Sedlock and the dog owner went to the police department to report the alleged sexual assault. The owner said Sedlock called him to tell him the dog went missing during the attack she spoke of.

Sedlock told police she was walking the dog near Garden Crescent Drive and Wing Street when she was approached by black man who asked her for a cigarette, then punched her in the head and dragged her to a secluded area where he sexually assaulted her, police said. Sedlock said the dog ran away during the assault, Theriault said. Sedlock was taken to Sherman Hospital for an examination.

The next day, police reinterviewed Sedlock's friends. The female said she had been with Sedlock the entire afternoon, while the male said Sedlock didn't mention the assault while they were looking for the dog.

Sedlock's father, who was out of town at the time, said his daughter told him the dog went missing while she was at an ice cream shop, police said.

Police also reinterviewed Sedlock, who eventually admitted to lying, Theriault said. She was arrested at the police department.

"We had some suspicions early on. There were some inconsistencies," he said. "We were able to verify and clarify what did happen."

Sedlock's bond was set at $5,000 on Friday morning in Kane County bond court in Elgin. She is next due in court on April 5.

Friday, March 15, 2013

For a long time, many rape survivors' advocates have unjustly trivialized the victimization of the wrongly accused by insisting there aren't enough of them to worry about. These advocates deftly discount exonerations and jury verdicts of "not guilty" in rape cases by pointing to the high standard of proof, "beyond a reasonable doubt," and saying -- correctly -- that it doesn't prove that a rape didn't occur.

But now, they will have a more difficult time invoking the standard of proof when a college student is cleared of sexual assault in college disciplinary hearings in light of the Department of Education's instruction that schools adjudicate sexual assault cases by using the lowest possible standard in our jurisprudence -- a preponderance of the evidence. This standard means that a school must find guilt if the evidence is even 50.001% tilted in favor of the accuser's story.

It is too early to say that the University of Michigan is a microcosm of the way American universities handle alleged sexual assault cases under the preponderance of the evidence standard, but in the first year that the school used the lower standard, there are some very interesting findings.

Of the 38 sexual assault violations reported to the school last year, six students were found responsible and seven students were cleared of wrongdoing. In 19 cases, officials didn't have enough information to move forward. Source.

At the University of Michigan last year, even with a preponderance of the evidence standard, fewer than 19 percent of reported claims could be proven.

Let us briefly analyze. First, let us look at the 19 cases that the school couldn't move forward on -- this was the majority of cases. It is probably fair to say that in most cases, the decision to not pursue these cases was not due to their "he said/she said" nature because the purpose of lowering the standard of proof was to allow schools to adjudicate "he said, she said" claims without worrying about obtaining corroborating evidence to buttress a disputed claim against a male student. It is fair to say that these claims generally didn't qualify as sexual assaults for a variety of reasons, including possibly false reporting, but without more information, it would be reckless to posit a definitive conclusion. It would, however, be grossly unjust to the community of the wrongly accused to assume that these claims were actual instances of sexual misconduct.

Set aside the nineteen reported claims that the school summarily dismissed due to insurmountable infirmities, of the claims that were actually adjudicated under the new "preponderance of the evidence" standard -- where, essentially, if the school believes the accused, the accused is cleared, and if it believes the accuser, the accused is punished -- the school found for the accused 54% of the time.

Rape survivor's advocates will have a more difficult time chalking up this result to the standard of proof. Even removing the 19 cases that were quickly disposed of with no charges, for most of the claims, the school did not disbelieve the accused.

It would be a mistake to assume that these seven claims where student were cleared were false reports -- we just don't know. For these seven cases, the school might have found the accuser's evidence equally compelling to the accused's.

What's ironic is this: the data that is used to prove that rape is rampant and to support efforts to minimize false rape claims largely comes from surveys that don't bother to actually test the claims by examining the evidence. This University of Michigan data is another example that, where the evidence is tested -- even using the low preponderance of the evidence standard -- there are relatively few claims that can be proven.

We know there are false claims, and we know there are actual sexual assaults, but mostly, there are claims where no one can say whether it was one or the other. For claims that are reported, it is fair to say that very few can be proven, even with a preponderance of the evidence standard.The community of the wrongly accused needs to be at the forefront in condemning sexual assault, but we also need to insist that the persons who dominate the public discourse on this subject stop assuming that exonerations and the gray claims that no one can say were rape or false claims, were, in fact, actual rapes, because that's simply dishonest, and they do it all the time.